Week 4 in the college football season is usually when we start to separate the contenders from the pretenders. After three amazing weekends of games, the action only continues to heat up as we head towards the end of September.
Conference play is kicking into high gear starting on Friday night when Stanford (No. 21) takes on Oregon State, and the weekend will come to its conclusion with another outstanding Pac-12 battle when USC (No. 16) heads to the desert to face Arizona State.
There is plenty of enticing action happening in between those contests. With that in mind, the following represent the top storylines for Week 4 of the 2015 college football season.
1. Which Stanford team will show up on Friday night at Oregon State?
Stanford (No. 21) reemerged onto the national scene as a team to be reckoned with in Week 3 with a tremendous display of physicality and execution against USC, knocking off the Trojans 41-31 at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. This was the team we all expected to see to open the season before a trip out east and a bad loss to Northwestern put a big damper on things.
While nobody would confuse the Beavers with the Trojans, these Pac-12 battles hardly ever go without a hitch. Making matters worse, Stanford may have to go without starting quarterback Kevin Hogan, who is dealing with a “significant” ankle injury, according to head coach David Shaw.
Oregon State quarterback Seth Collins has dual-threat abilities but was stymied badly against Michigan a couple weeks ago. Stanford’s defense should be able to handle anything the Beavers throw its way, but then again, dual-threat quarterback Clayton Thorson was able to make hay against this unit in Week 1.
Depending on which Stanford team shows up on Friday night, the Cardinal could blow out Oregon State or lose in a stinker. It’s up to coach Shaw to make sure his players have the right mindset to ensure it’s the former.
This contest can be viewed on FOX Sports 1 starting at 10 p.m. ET.
2. First huge test at home for Jim Harbaugh and the Wolverines
After losing a tough game on the road to Utah in Week 1, Harbaugh has had his team rolling at home against Oregon State and UNLV. However, a new challenge awaits the Wolverines in Week 4, as Tanner Mangum leads a feisty BYU (No. 22) squad into The Big House.
Mangum, as many are likely aware, was forced into action for the Cougars when starting quarterback Taysom Hill was lost for the year in Week 1. The freshman phenom made two game-winning plays in a row in the first two games of the year but was unable to duplicate the feat last weekend against UCLA, which relied on a punishing rushing attack to keep the Cougars off the field as much as possible.
Harbaugh will likely implement a similar strategy on Saturday, just as he’s done the past couple of weekends with quarterback Jake Ruddock struggling to connect with his receivers downfield. Fans should expect a low-scoring affair, unless turnovers end up going the other way for defensive scores.
A loss for Michigan wouldn’t really signal much of anything, but a win against a top program like BYU would be an indicator that Harbaugh’s early work might pay off much sooner than anticipated with a prominent bowl bid later this year.
Not surprisingly, this is a nationally televised game that can be viewed on ABC beginning at 12 p.m. ET.
3. What will Leonard Fournette do for an encore against Syracuse?
In just two games, Fournette has quickly established himself as the man to beat for the 2015 Heisman Trophy. Last weekend against Auburn, the running back romped for 228 yards on 19 carries (12 yards per carry) and scored three times on the ground.
The numbers are impressive enough, but the way Fournette was able to achieve them is what blew everybody away. He literally ran through many of Auburn’s defenders on his way to a career day at home in front of the adoring crowd in Death Valley.
Coach Ed Orgeron said of his star running back afterwards, “That was the most dominant performance of any college player I’ve seen in my 30 years coaching. It was unbelievable,” via CampusRush.com.
Up next for LSU (No. 8) is undefeated Syracuse. The Orange features one of the top run defenses in the nation, allowing just 46.7 yards per game and two rushing touchdowns in three games. To be fair, this team hasn’t faced a punishing offense like the one they’ll see this weekend, so it’s hard to imagine this level of success against the run will continue.
This is a battle of strength vs. strength. Based on the way Fournette and the rest of LSU’s running backs made minced meat out of Auburn’s defense, however, we’re giving the Tigers a slight (ok, maybe it’s more along the gargantuan side) edge in this one.
This nationally televised game can be viewed on ESPN beginning at 12 p.m. ET.
4. Will the OSU Cowboys rope the Texas Longhorns?
Texas, fresh off a heartbreaking loss to Cal at home last weekend, doesn’t have the luxury of an easy opponent as a means to bounce back. Instead, the OSU Cowboys are coming to town for a Big 12 showdown in Austin.
Charlie Strong’s second season driving the Longhorns hasn’t gone according to plan, but perhaps there is a bit of a silver lining from last weekend. New offensive play-caller Jay Norvell had quarterback Jerrod Heard moving the offense extremely well against the Golden Bears. Heard actually broke a school record (previously held by Vince Young) for the most total yards of any player, with 527.
Texas will need Norvell and Heard to continue working well together on Saturday to have any chance of keeping up with the high-scoring offense of Oklahoma State (No. 24). The Cowboys have had an easy schedule to this point, and quite honestly the Longhorns shouldn’t pose much of a threat, either.
Featuring an extremely balanced offense that averaged over 500 yards per game the first three weeks of the season and a tough defense that allows under 12 points per game, OSU should be able to win handily to open its Big 12 slate up with a big win on the road.
Fans can watch this game nationally on ESPN, starting at 3:30 p.m. ET.
5. Who’s it going to be for Ohio State and Urban Meyer?
In one of the most interesting stories of the entire season so far, Urban Meyer’s Buckeyes (No. 1) haven’t featured the explosive offense we all figured they would. Thanks to lackluster quarterback play by both Cardale Jones and J.T. Barrett, Ohio State was lucky to escape with a win over Northern Illinois last weekend at home.
During that contest, Jones was particularly ineffective with a couple of interceptions, prompting an early switch to Barrett, who also struggled to produce. As a team, Ohio State gained just 136 total passing yards and 14 first downs — either by air or by ground. It was as embarrassing a performance as we’ve seen since Meyer took over.
The head coach would not say who he plans on utilizing as the starter going forward, but surprisingly it has been Jones (still) taking the majority of practice reps for the Buckeyes. The one thing Jones has going for him is a penchant for making big plays downfield, which Meyer said is “a high, high emphasis right now,” via Bill Rabinowitz.
It shouldn’t really matter, scoreboard-wise, who starts. Western Michigan has no business hanging with Ohio State, but then again that’s what we figured heading into Week 3 as well. Then the Huskies gave this team all it could handle before falling apart at the end on the road.
The real implications of Meyer’s decision come later down the road. But there’s no doubt he needs to choose a quarterback and then stick with him.
This contest will be nationally televised either on ABC or ESPN2 starting at 3:30 p.m. ET.
6. Can Texas Tech hang with TCU?
It’s been a season of challenges for the Horned Frogs, as injuries have been a huge story thus far. Heading into Week 4, however, it’s a challenge of a different nature facing TCU (No. 3), as head coach Gary Patterson suspended senior defensive end Mike Tuaua and freshman receiver Andre Petties-Wilson after both were arrested for robbery.
To this point, Patterson has been able to keep his team focused through the trials.
“I’ve been through a lot of different situations here, and you’ve always seen how I handle it,” Patterson said, via the Associated Press. “My job is also to be a father to my players, and if they screw up, they screw up. And in my lifetime here at TCU in 18 years, we’ve had a few of those, but not as many as others.”
Quarterback Trevone Boykin has done amazing work to keep TCU’s offense clicking in a big way. The Horned Frogs will need to keep scoring points in bunches this weekend against undefeated Texas Tech, though, because their defense isn’t good enough to win this game.
The Red Raiders are averaging 54.3 points and over 590 yards per game. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes was outstanding during last weekend’s showdown with Arkansas, completing 26-of-30 passes for 243 yards and a touchdown while running 10 times for 58 yards and two scores.
The last time these two programs took to the field of battle, Boykin went off to historic effect, throwing seven touchdowns en route to a huge 82-27 win over the Red Raiders. Things won’t be so easy this time around, and if TCU isn’t on point, nobody should be surprised if we have an upset special on our hands.
This nationally televised game can be viewed on FOX starting at 4:45 p.m. ET.
7. Maty Mauk must rebound for Missouri at Kentucky
Missouri is clinging to the top 25 by the hair of its chinny-chin-chin. Another stinker of a performance by quarterback Maty Mauk could be the end of all hope, however, for the Tigers in this regard.
Mauk was roundly booed last weekend by the home crowd after throwing an interception in his third straight game, and he’s been consistently bad thus far to open the season.
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The Tigers barely escaped with a win at home against Connecticut, and if the senior quarterback doesn’t bounce back with a strong performance then Kentucky will win.
Despite the poor showing by Missouri last weekend, Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops isn’t taking the Tigers lightly.
“They’ve always played hard, and they win close games,” Stoops said, per the Associated Press. “That’s credit to what they’re doing and how they’re coaching them, and the energy that their team plays with is good.”
The Wildcats surprised many by beating South Carolina on the road in Week 2 but couldn’t maintain positive momentum last weekend against Florida. Both programs need better play from their quarterbacks, so it will be interesting to see if either Mauk or Kentucky’s Patrick Towles can pull out of their personal doldrums this Saturday.
Those who have the SEC Network will be able to view this contest starting at 7:30 p.m. ET.
8. Will Josh Rosen bounce back for UCLA at Arizona?
This is a tremendous Pac-12 battle between ranked teams. UCLA (No. 9) hits the road after barely holding on at home over BYU last weekend. Arizona (No. 16) has been an offensive juggernaut so far to open the season, scoring over 54 points per game while featuring a brutal rushing offense that averages 321 yards per contest.
True freshman Josh Rosen of UCLA cannot suffer through another dismal performance in this one if the Bruins have a hope of remaining undefeated. After opening up the season with a breakout performance against Virginia, he’s been downright atrocious the past two weekends, throwing four interceptions and completing roughly half his passes.
While the Bruins would love to just pound the ball between the tackles with Paul Perkins and Co., the truth of the matter is they’re going to need Rosen to step up on the road in order to win this game. Running back Nate Starks made it clear the young quarterback hasn’t lost confidence, despite his recent struggles.
“He’s not worried about the mistakes,” Starks said, per the Associated Press. “It’s all about moving on to the next game. We’re getting ready for Arizona, and that’s the main goal.”
Defensively, UCLA lost Fabian Moreau for the year with a Lisfranc injury but gained Ishmael Adams, who has been suspended the first three games after allegedly robbing an Uber driver of his cell phone. Head coach Jim Mora reinstated him on Tuesday after the student-athlete evaded felony charges.
This is a prime-time matchup that is being televised nationally on ABC starting at 8 p.m. ET.
9. Huge Pac-12 showdown between Utah and Oregon
Utah (No. 18) has been a pleasant surprise thus far, going undefeated through the first three games. The first huge test is yet to come for the Utes, however, who must attempt to match the high-powered Oregon (No. 13) offense in Eugene this Saturday night.
Oregon’s offense will likely see the return of quarterback Vernon Adams Jr., who sat out last weekend’s game with a broken finger. He calls the injury 80 percent healed at this time but is raring to get back on the field after watching from the sidelines in Week 3 while Jeff Lockie put up 61 points on the scoreboard.
He viewed it as a learning experience but wasn’t shy about how much it “sucked” being out of commission.
“It sucked, obviously, being on the sideline not playing, but it was good for me to learn from Jeff and see him go through his progressions, his reads and lead the team,” Adams said, via ESPN.com’s Chantel Jennings.
Oregon will likely go with Adams in this one, as oregonlive.com reported, and he’ll need to have a brilliant game through the air. Utah is adept at shutting down the run, ranking No. 27 in the nation with just 105.7 rushing yards allowed per game.
On the other side, Oregon’s defense needs to step up in a huge way. To this point, the Ducks have struggled to shut down opposing offenses, ranking No. 105 in total yards allowed with 456.3 per game. Utah running back Devontae Booker will look to carry the Utes to victory by abusing this porous unit.
This Pac-12 showdown is being televised nationally on Fox, starting at 8:30 p.m. ET.
10. Will USC bounce back or continue stumbling at ASU?
From a pure talent standpoint, USC (No. 16) should have beaten Stanford last Saturday night, but the Trojans got pushed around in the trenches on the defensive side of the ball. As a result, the program was dropped significantly in the rankings, by 10 spots.
It’s actually crazy when you look at the stats from that game. Quarterback Cody Kessler was really on point, completing 25-of-32 passes for 272 yards with three touchdowns an no interceptions. The running game was also solid, averaging 5.5 yards per carry.
But USC’s defense was absolutely abused by the Cardinal, which dictated the pace of play and the physical nature of the contest.
The Sun Devils have an offense that could certainly keep pace with Kessler and Co. Led by senior quarterback Mike Bercovici, who has bounced back nicely after a disappointing Week 1 performance, ASU can beat teams through the air and on the ground. Electric sophomore running back Demario Richard is averaging 5.3 yards per carry this season and routinely spelled by senior D.J. Foster, who can pound the ball between the tackles and make big plays in the passing game as the team’s third-down back.
Bercovici has some experience taking down the Trojans. He put together the game of his career last year in a big upset win, 38-34, passing for 510 yards and five touchdowns.
A loss by USC would probably see the Trojans tumble near the bottom of the top 25 — if not all the way out of the rankings. Conversely, a win by ASU would likley put the Sun Devils back into the rankings after they fell out of them with an opening loss to Texas A&M.
This game will be nationally televised on ESPN beginning at 10:30 p.m. ET.